Page 55 of A Summer Mismatch
Logan eyed Chuckles, and he didn’t know if it was his imagination or not, but he imagined Chuckles sizing him up in return.
“I’ll allow him to stay if you promise he’ll behave,” he said.
Shirley held her hand up. “Scouts honor. My Chuckles is a gentleman.” She leaned closer and lowered her voice, presumably so Chuckles couldn’t hear. “Also, he can’t fly, so he’ll stay in place.”
“I appreciate the assurance,” Logan said, just as seriously. “You’ll keep him in his cage too.”
“Of course, but we do need an up-close seat so he can see his new friends,” she said. She looked to the front and her eyes lit up! “Why, you brought a parrot as well!”
“That’s Circe, our blue-and-gold macaw,” Logan said.
“This is fate!” Shirley bustled toward the front with a quick wave goodbye.
“Well, on that note…” Julia said, a huge smile on her face.
Logan laughed. “I’d better get up there before there’s an animal mutiny, led by Chuckles.”
“Though that would be entertaining, we probably don’t need any more drama than necessary today.” Julia’s eyes nervously flittered toward Grandpa Smitty.
Logan let out a short huff of breath as he caught his grandpa glaring at them. This rivalry was going to be the death of him. He turned to the kids. “Let’s go sit with Grandpa.”
As he left, he linked his pinkie with Julia’s before their fingers slid apart. The way she caught her breath was satisfying. Perhaps she was just as affected by him as he was by her.
Logan ushered the kids over to Grandpa and headed to the front just as Horace walked in. Time seemed to stop as Horace’s laser-sharp eyes scanned the room. Logan braced himself for yelling at best, a punch in the face at worst, but to his shock, Horace merely glanced over his head as though he didn’t exist. Even more shocking, his gaze met Grandpa Smitty’s and the two men nodded at one another.
Logan wouldn’t go so far as to call it a friendly nod, more the kind of grim nod the Secretary of State might give the President before a nuclear missile is deployed. A dread he couldn’t explain stalked at his heels.
A man wearing navy blue scrubs entered behind Horace, and both Smitty and Logan turned to look at him. He was the picture-perfect poster child for tall, dark, and broodingly handsome.
With a determined walk, Horace and the brooder headed toward where Julia leaned against the wall. And from the look on Julia’s face, she was surprised to see the brooding man, and even more surprised when he bent down to give her a hug that swept her off her feet.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Julia
“Whatareyoudoinghere?” Julia asked Timothy, who still held her aloft. Because of his height, he always loved to hug her tight enough to pull her feet from the ground. It was something she’d always been a little embarrassed about, but it was harmless, so she’d never said anything.
She wiggled out of his embrace now, her face on fire.
“I’m here for the animal show, of course. It sounded fascinating.”
She lifted a brow. “I thought you were too busy for any activities this summer.”
The minute the words left her mouth, she wished she could recall them. She wasn’t bitter about the break-up. In fact, she was relieved. If they had been dating, she never would have taken more than a second look at Logan. Never kissed him or experienced the lightheaded sensation she could get from just linking pinkies.
Timothy had done them a favor. Even if he had done it in a terrible way.
Timothy winced. “Yeah, sorry about that. I know it was in poor form to text, but I couldn’t find the chance to give you a call, and well, you know how it is. This is just how we do things, right?”
“Right.” How had she not seen how unfulfilling a relationship like that had been?
Logan had clipped on the lapel mic, and was beginning to talk to the group in a soft, but energetic voice. “Welcome, everyone. We can’t be too loud and startle the animals, but these guys are used to the mic, and they love people. I want to start by introducing myself.” He glanced her way, and their eyes met. Her stomach flipped. He was in his element, and she loved seeing him this way.
Timothy took her hand and squeezed her fingers, bringing her attention back to him. She withdrew her hand.
“I’ve taken several things off my plate, so I’m ready to pick back up again.”
“Timothy, let’s talk later. I want to watch this.”
